St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1887-07-14
GIre Galedunialr.
VERMONT COLONY IN DAKOTA.
Oorrsepondenee Spr;nqfeld Repa1liean.

| suppose if one of the pioneer set
.ers of Ohio or Kentucky could visit
be of the new settlements in Dakota
Is would exclaim in derision, "whai
b these people know of the hardships
III a primitive colony, only twenty
lies from a railroad" And the old
@Sllow who had hand-t hand fight
tith nature and the Indians would
hve the right to question the courage
nd endurance of those peOpling these
road prairies, mostly destitute of
lees, it is true, but with a rich virgin
Bill only waiting the hand of the hus-
Andman to bud and blossom as the
bse. Yet | venture to say that there
81 more repining, more dissatisfaction
it'll ones surroundings, more longing
zbr the old homes, abandoned in many
distances because a livelihood could
lot be secured, than were ever heard a
nndred years ago in those rude log
f hts, far away from all traces of civili-
3tiOn. 1t is too cold or it is too hot,
8 De mails are behind time, prices are
kOrbitant are some of the lamenta-
bns heard daily, often to be account
8 for from the fact that so many come
IRE simply for purposes of specula-
iOn, intending to remain only so long
81 it shall please them. There is,
therefore, a constant change of pOpula-
{Dn, some going, others coming, and
then one sells out in disgust and re-
arns to the flesh-pOts of Egypt he is
Eermed "tenderfOot," and spoken of
In a Multiplying, half-cOntemptuous
! way by those Drawer than himself.
Il Vermont City is a settlement in Ed
&bunds county, made eighteen months
20 by colony from Vermont, under
be leadership of b. F. Bowman. The
learest railroad station at that time
AS Ipswich, twenty miles distant.
Comfortable frame houses were built,
b township organized, the town bond
b for 81 400 to build the schOOl-hOuse,
Dd the people spent their first winter
*o a pleasant way, maintaining news
<1ap per, a literary club, religious ser
ices and good school. They had no
Z'Dst office nor regular mail, but who
Yer Glanced to be in Ipswich brought
+ 81 the mail for all. The next spring
. 'bst- Office was established and kept in
"lean-tO" of the pOstmaster's house,
s BID stage began running three times
week. The single store now had two
walls, one being kept, according to the
arcastic remark of the primitive
saler, in a hen-cOOp. The remark
3 i ght not have been made had not the
Persuasive clucking of the hen called
way the chickens from the original
lore. A hotel was opened, new colo
,lists came in, and the people went to
Cork on their claims with hOpefulness
nd energy. In July a severe hail
tOrm seriously injured the crops, and
DC drOuth which followed rendered
I'd crops scarcely worth harvesting.
Encouragement and gloom took the
lace of hope, somewhat relieved by
Ile extension of the Chicago, Milwau-
Zee 81 st. Paul railway through the
Own. A depot was built, d town site
lid out and lots are now in the mar
let. The settlement endured well the
gOrs of last winter and expects to
u bake great progress the coming sea-
Sbn. This is a fair sample of the early
Experiences of new settlements in Da-
<Ota, though all are not SO fortunate
81 securing Il railroad.
81 So barns and dug-Outs are not so nu-
HlerOus as one might suppose. They
Furnish the best protection from cold
.AHu WiHus OuJ tIO al OnOn5O W bnO
bye. A person accustomed to tidy,
|well-kept streets, turns with disgust
from the litter and rubbish surround
ing these new homes. Foreigners are
here in large numbers, and Dakota
3may appropriately be called cOsmO-
.pOlitan territory. 1t is no unusual
to see a Russian woman, envel-
bped in a mans fur OvercOat, sitting in
two wheeled vehicle, driving a sim
gle OK in harness, or n German woman
'trudging by the side of a pair of oxen,
Baking a load of grain to market. The
Courage of the women in undertaking
frips of ten miles or more will be APP
'preciated when it is known that the
houses are frequently miles apart and
the wind blows almost constantly in a
'kery aggravating way, finding pas
Bage through all clothing of ordinary
4exture. Sometimes weights are plac-
ed in the bottom of skirts to prevent
&heir ascending, balloon style, over
she head. Women with big bustles
.And flowing drapery are anything but
graceful when exposed to the fantastic
tricks of Dakota winds. When hand
bags which chance to hold the maiden's
love letters are opened on the street
hway whirl the lovers signs, making
moan to the unfeeling ear of the wide
STRETCHING prairie. Is it any wonder
Ahat the women as a rule, are discOn
Rented and pine for more friendly
{elimeP Man is not so easily affected
by his surroundings aud devOtes most
OF his time to money making. A man
BONES into the territory with few
|hundred dollars, begins speculation in
Band and in five years is worth $780,
boo or more. There is general spirit
/ of unrest, of looking for the unexpect-
led, pervading all classes of society.
ALTHOUGH society has no well-establish-
/ ed grades yet the most cultivated and
|refined-those having the best oppor-
tunities of foreign travel and study
may find their peers here and pleasant
among the pioneer set
tiers of Dakota. The numerous rail
roads bring to our doors the best talent
OF the country. Hundreds of miles OF
railroad have been built in 1886 and
there is "A still greater prospective mum
Der for 1887. Dakota needs the power
'bf statehood to regulate her internal
|affairs, to hold in check the evils at
tendant upon so rapid growth of a new
country, new in development, yet fan
in advance of many older sections il
providing for the education of heI
children and establishing measures tt
promote the public welfare.
AIar6aan Ilnl-nfa Nov 1897